My 22nd Birthday ~

I thought this year's birthday would be quite toned down, as last year's 21st is supposed to be the big shebang as per western tradition and all.

But no, this year my mom decided I was finally starting to look adulty! Lol

My actual birthday (5th Dec) was pretty chill. We had a Christmas lunch at work, courtesy of manager (thank you JP!) where everyone talked about Christmas traditions and children and I realised I had neither *sob*

But that aside, I really do love the people I work with, so it was really nice that the Christmas lunch happened on my birthday!

For dinner, mom said we could go anywhere I wanted. I have been wanting to try places around Britomart for the longest time, but could not justify the hefty prices of those restaurants just for the lols. Birthdays are a great reason from that aspect, to try out places I usually wouldn't go!

We had dinner at Ebisu, ordering a platter for four (lol) and umeshu.

The sashimi was amazing - my mom was so happy with the fact that her very delicate stomach did not reject the raw seafood haha. Quality Assurance test: pass!

The pink umeshu is fruity and very very sweet, while the 'standard' one was pretty nice. I do like some umeshu once in a while :3

The platter was just the perfect amount that we didn't need to order anything else! So afterwards, we went to Milse for dessert. I have always been meaning to try out their evening menu items, so my birthday was the perfect reason for indulging in all the fatty goodness!

We ordered the tasting menu set above, but they also included an extra appetizer - the passionfruit cream stick thing. No idea what it was called, but it was yummy (and fatty cough cough)

My favourite is the pumpkin (top right image) , with the valrhona kalingo (bottom right) coming close second. Would have liked a little more spice in the pumpkin, and a little less sweet in the valrhona kalingo, but anywho we got bar-type seats so it was very entertaining watching the everyone working in the kitchen. My mom was so amazed by the fact that they put away every little container even if they bring it out only half a minute later for a different dish! X'D

We went home after finishing dinner and a brief tour of downtown for my mom. She doesn't come into the CBD too often, so it was a nice chance to do some exploring. Sometimes you miss a lot of details when you see things every day!

I found my gift waiting on my desk when we got home -

The box is the OBAKU watch I reviewed in my previous post, and set with the most fragrant and cute bouquet of roses! I usually don't like to spam money on flowers cause they're hella expensive in Nz but these were sooo cute and it was a present so I can't complain right haha

My mom also decided that this year, I should have a party. I really did not have the brain power to plan something during the semester, so it was really nice that my mom went about and arranged everything! The party was a fairly closed affair - some family friends from out east and central came over, had a feast and caught up on life. Most importantly, had a nice drinking session LOL

My mom ordered me a super yummy coffee cake. One can never escape from coffee after the love of coffee has set in right!? XD

And I received some more gifts - the new OPI gwen stefani 18k gold speckled top coat and a Estee Lauder lip gloss set (with travel bag)

I might review these later, but anyway I've had a try with the red lip gloss (photos on my twitter @snowrii) and I love it! I usually never wear lip gloss because they are 99.9% too sticky and impractical for NZ winds, but these felt pretty good. Giving them a true outdoor run on Monday (tomorrow) though.

The gold top coat is pretty nice for subtle designs, and should only be applied in one coat or else the gold glitter overwhelms the gold pieces. I always love getting new nail polish though *v*

So thank you DJ (& fam) for your presents!! Super loving them ~

Also ty for your present MC! ;)

And so... That's pretty much what happened for my birthday! It was very pleasant and lively, mostly thanks to my mom for taking care of everything! So many thankful feelsssssss~ thank you mom!

=^.^=